Is tech training different from other types of training?
For credit unions, the real answer is 'yes'—and 'no.'
When first asked if technology training differs much from the other types of training credit unions tend to do, Dixie Abramian, CME, CSE, responds, “not necessarily. There is always a learning curve when it comes to anything new that is introduced.”
That said, there’s little question that taking your employees through something so massive as a core conversion is a more complex affair than most other tech training endeavors. “It can take a while longer to get everybody up to speed on and comfortable with a new system,” says the CUES member, president/CEO of $1.3 billion, 45,000-member Firefighters First Credit Union, Los Angeles. “It can take them longer to get bought-in to it, too.”
Shareta Caldwell agrees—and suggests the increased intensity associated with training related to a core conversion shouldn’t be too surprising. “It’s different from any other conversion you do,” says Caldwell, VP/HR for $75 million, 5,600-member VA Desert Pacific Federal Credit Union (vadpfcu.org), Signal Hill, California. “This is everything. This is how your credit union runs.”
With almost any other technology purchase or investment, “you can get away from it easily,” she adds. “The contracts usually are short. And at the end of those contracts, you can walk away without [losing] much money if you’re not happy.”
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